Elusive Peace

Is Real Peace Elusive?

Are you struggling today to hold on to seemingly elusive peace or do you know someone else who is?

My interpretation of peace has changed over the years. I use to think of it as a lack of war. When I think of peace now, I think of it as me being in a state where my sanity is not being threatened because I have something that I can hold onto and count on. Actually, it is Someone.

Isaiah 26:3

“You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in You.”

This God who can bring real peace to the human heart and mind… what an awesome God He must be!!

The Amplified Bible says it this way:

“You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because He commits himself to You, leans on You and hopes confidently in You.”

That is quite a large statement. How awesome it is to know that we can have, not elusive peace, but real and consistent peace! In the midst of my breast cancer experience, God brought me to this verse and basically told me to hold onto it for peace and, therefore, sanity.

Peace in Trouble

How do you have peace in the midst of dreadful circumstances? I became very familiar with the word ‘dreadful’ during my breast cancer journey back in 2003. I was filled with dread as I moved involuntarily from one new doctor appointment or one more procedure to another.

Many people have a worse prognosis than I had and my heart really goes out to them because my relatively simple experience that lasted a few months was just overwhelming. I was never really terrified or afraid of dying, but I was full of dread. With so many doctor appointments and procedures, I always had something looming in front of me. However, God gave me this verse in Isaiah 26:3 to hold onto and hold on I did. When I would start to lose my grip on it He would tighten His grip on me. He carried me day by day down the path He had laid out for me. He kept me sane because He infused real peace into me with this verse and some others.

Are you fighting for your sanity right now? Do you need God to infuse you with His amazing peace even more than usual?

Let’s go to the verse:

NIV “You will keep in perfect peace… “

AMP “You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace… “

God, Himself, is doing the ‘keeping’ here. Perfect peace is a real peace without gaps – it is constant. Wow!

Obsessed

NIV “…him whose mind is steadfast… “

AMP “…whose [both in inclination and character]is stayed on You…”

This is more than just thinking about God. This is being focused to the point of obsession with God in inclination [what we normally tend to do] and character [who we are at our core] – deeply focused. I want this kind of focus. How about you?

Why do people get obsessed with other people? Because somehow, the focus of their obsession seems like it will satisfy some need in them. So, it actually makes complete sense for us to be obsessed with God because He actually does satisfy us!

No Trust Issues

NIV “…because he trusts in You.”

AMP “…because he commits himself to You, leans on You and hopes confidently in You.”

Have you ever really thought about the word ‘trust’? It means to commit to; to lean on; to hope confidently in. Such a small, seemingly common word but a huge word in reality.

The most beautiful part of this picture is that God is completely trustworthy. We can confidently commit ourselves to Him, lean on Him, and hope confidently in HIm.

Our verse today has the same basic message as Romans 15:13 which we talked about a while back. They both say in different ways: Trust God, really trust Him, and He will give you real and lasting peace. I don’t know about you, but I really needed to be reminded of this today.

Things to Ponder:

Are you trying to get your peace from another source?

Do you know God well enough, His character and personality traits, to trust Him with anything? Do you need to get to know Him better? I am being facetious, we all do.

How can we keep our minds steadfast on Him? Click the underlined passage for another entry that may help with that.

May the Lord fill you with His peace as you focus your life on Him and really trust Him today!

About Dell

Hi! Welcome to Tapestry! I am Dell Scruggs and I am a Christian. I have a deep passion for God and His Word. I also have a deep passion to grow and see others grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ. Quilting and watercolor are my favorite things to do in my spare time. I have an incredible husband, two amazing sons, two wonderful daughters-in-law and an absolutely adorable granddaughter!